NFC Fantasy Breakdown – Week Five

The Cardinals and Texans should produce plenty of points for fantasy owners

Minnesota @ St Louis
Normally this might be a spot where I would expect the Vikings to have a down week. On the road with a short week coming off a great performance against a divisional rival. You could say the Vikings are in for a let down this week. But as fate would have it they are playing the awful St. Louis Rams. Minny may not beat the Rams as badly as they should, but I certainly don't expect a close game. To top it off it looks like Ram's QB Marc Bulger will miss another game, not that he would make a big difference anyway.

Oakland @ NY GiantsEli Manning may miss this one with a sore heel which would be somewhat concerning for ownersof the Giants receivers. Keep an eye on the situation and if David Carr gets the start you should consider other options if you own Steve Smith, Mario Manningham, Kevin Boss or any other Giants pass-catcher. Whether Manning plays or not the Giants will have little trouble running on the Raiders, making Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw solid starts.

Fantasy Projections

JaMarcus Russell - 150 passing yards 0 TD 2 INT

Michael Bush - 100 total yards 1 TD

Louis Murphy - 3 receptions 50 yards

Zach Miller - 5 receptions 50 yards

David Carr - 200 passing yards 1 TD 1 INT

Brandon Jacobs- 100 total yards 2 TDs

Ahmad Bradshaw - 100 total yards

Steve Smith - 5 receptions 75 yards

Mario Manningham - 4 receptions 75 yards

Kevin Boss - 3 receptions 40 yards

Final Score - NY Giants 27, Oakland 7

McNabb should have a great game in his return

Tampa Bay @ Philadelphia
I can't remember a season when there were so many terrible teams in the NFL, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are very close to the bottom. Cadillac Williams and Kellen Winslow are threats in the red zone, but the Bucs get there so rarely they are just borderline starters. For the Eagles, Donovan McNabb returns from his week 1 rib injury to face the 23rd ranked Tampa pass defense. McNabb, DeSean Jackson, and Brent Celek are all must-starts.

Pittsburgh @ Detroit
Well, the Lions failed to make it two in a row. Now they have the defending champs in town coming off an impressive offensive performance against San Diego on Sunday Night. The Lions offense is pretty banged up right now, Kevin Smith's shoulder appeared to be fine on Sunday, but neither Matthew Stafford or Calvin Johnson practiced Wednesday. Offensive Tackle Gosder Cherilus also missed practice, which is not a good sign as they go up against the NFL's #3 defense.

Willie Parker looks doubtful, but his time as the #1 guy appears to be over with Rashard Mendenhall's breakout game. Expect a heavy dose of Mendenhall against a defense surrendering 119 rushing yards per game.

Washington @ Carolina
The Panther offense has been absolutely putrid this season, but the defense hasn't helped. Playing from behind a majority of the time has forced the Panthers to get away from their strength; running the football. Jake Delhomme has proven he cannot handle the load by himself, but he could still be efficient if the defense and running game get on track.

The Redskins haven't had as many offensive problems, until they get close to the end zone where they have not been able to punch it in. Santana Moss has been a bright spot with long TD catches in his last two games but week-to-week consistency for all Redskins is a big concern.

Fantasy Projections

Jason Campbell- 250 passing yards 2 TDs 2 INTs

Clinton Portis - 130 total yards

Santana Moss - 4 receptions 120 yards, 1 TD

Chris Cooley - 6 receptions 80 yards, 1 TD

Jake Delhomme - 175 passing yards 1 TD 1 INT

DeAngelo Williams- 110 total yards 2 TDs

Jonothan Stewart - 90 total yards

Steve Smith - 6 receptions 90 yards, 1 TD

Dante Rosario - 4 receptions 50 yards

Final Score - Carolina 21, Washington 17

Atlanta @ San Fransisco
This is a good matchup between two up and coming NFC teams. The Falcons surprised everyone last year with their run to the playoffs. Their defense, however, has not been good thus far this season ranking 31st in the NFL. Matt Ryan has remained an efficient and effective starter but has yet to cross the barrier, as many expected, to elite status.

The 49ers have been great running the football and stopping the run, but they still need some work in the passing game on both sides of the ball. With Frank Gore out for another week life will be tough for San Fran's offense, but the weakness of Atlanta's D should make for an interesting matchup. As a side note, if you drafted or picked up Michael Crabtree he should not be in your starting lineup now that he has signed. Give him until at least after the bye week, but even then its unlikely he will make a huge impact this season as a rookie who has already missed a quarter of the season.

Jacksonville @ Seattle
The Jaguars offense was fired on all cylinders last week, with David Garrard coming up with one of the best performances of his career. Maurice Jones-Drew may be the best all-around back in the league and Mike Sims-Walker is emerging as the go-to target Jacksonville fans have been craving since the retirement of Jimmy Smith. Its a tough road trip from Jacksonville to Seattle but the Jags matchup well against the Seahawks defense.

Matt Hasselbeck probably won't play, and he would make a big difference. After putting up 28 points in the opener, Seattle has failed to crack 20 in the three games Hasselbeck missed significant time. Julius Jones has been a pleasant surprise and could have some success as long as Seneca Wallace does reasonably well in the passing game.

Fantasy Projections

David Garrard- 275 passing yards 2 TDs 1 INT 40 rushing yards

Maurice Jones-Drew - 120 total yards 2 TD

Mike Sims-Walker - 6 receptions 100 yards, 1 TD

Torry Holt - 3 receptions 70 yards 1 TD

Seneca Wallace- 225 passing yards 1 TD 2 INTs

Julius Jones- 130 total yards 2 TDs

TJ Houshmandzadeh - 6 receptions 60 yards

Nate Burleson - 5 receptions 90 yards

John Carlson - 4 receptions 50 yards 1 TD

Final Score - Jacksonville 28, Seattle 21

Houston @ Arizona
The Cardinals and Texans are very similar teams. Both put up big passing numbers but struggle to run the ball and play defense. That paradigm worked well for Arizona last year during their Super Bowl run, but with a combined record of 3-4 these two teams would prefer to have more reliance on their respective ground attacks. An expected shootout like this is fun to watch for fantasy owners, unless of course your opponent has more offensive players than you. Every significant offensive player in this game can be considered a good start, and obviously avoid both defenses.